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Abstract:

A closure assembly has a closure cap (2) adapted to be fitted to the neck
of container to close the container. The cap (2) has an upper wall (4)
and a cylindrical skirt (5) depending therefrom. A reservoir (7) is
formed on the underside of the upper wall (4) radially within the skirt
(5) and has a dispensing opening (9). A closing member (3) is fitted into
the closure cap (2) to close the dispensing opening in the reservoir.
When the closure cap (2) is removed from the container, the closing
member (3) remains held within the neck of the container and is separated
from the closure cap so that the dispensing opening is opened and
material contained therein is dispensed into the container. The closure
cap is provided with sealing means for directly sealing against the neck
of a container such as an annular wall (12) extending downwardly from the
underside of 43 the upper wall of the closure cap (2) to fit sealingly
into the neck of the container.

Claims:

1-8. (canceled)

9. A closure assembly comprising: a closure cap adapted to be fitted to
the neck of a container to close the container, said cap comprising an
upper wall and a cylindrical skirt depending there from, a reservoir
being formed on the underside of the upper wall within the skirt and
provided with a dispensing opening; and a closing member to close the
dispensing opening of the reservoir; the closing member comprising a
fixing member, the fixing member being adapted to fit into the neck of
the container, when the assembly is fitted thereto, with an interference
fit a plug member, the plug member being adapted to fit into an open end
of the reservoir to close the reservoir when the closure cap and closing
member are fitted together, a passage element, allowing material to be
dispensed from the reservoir into the container, the interference fit
being such that when the closure cap is removed from the container, the
closing member remains held within the neck of the container and is
separated from the closure cap so that the dispensing opening is opened
and material contained therein is dispensed into the container, wherein
the closure cap is provided with sealing means for directly sealing
against the neck of such container, in particular with an annular wall
extending downwardly from the underside of the upper wall of the closure
cap to fit sealingly into the neck of the container

10. An assembly according to claim 9, wherein the reservoir is formed by
a annular reservoir wall extending downwardly from the underside of the
upper wall of the closure cap.

11. An assembly according to claim 9, wherein the passage element
comprises a plurality of radial bridges, passages being formed between
the radial bridges such that when the closure cap is separated from the
closing member, material can be dispensed from the reservoir through the
passages and into the container.

12. An assembly according to claim 10, wherein the passage element
comprises a plurality of radial bridges, passages being formed between
the radial bridges such that when the closure cap is separated from the
closing member, material can be dispensed from the reservoir through the
passages and into the container.

13. An assembly according to claim 9, wherein the annular wall comprises
a convex closure sealing zone, in which the outer diameter of the annular
wall is greater than the inner diameter of the container neck.

14. An assembly according to claim 9, wherein the fixing member comprises
at least one fixation zone, in which the outer diameter of the fixing
member is greater than the inner diameter of the container neck.

15. An assembly according to claim 9, wherein the axial length of the
reservoir mainly corresponds to the sum of the axial length of the fixing
member and the axial length of the annular wall.

16. An assembly according to claim 9, wherein the closure cap comprises
at least one centring member extending downwardly from the underside of
the upper wall radially outwardly of the reservoir and radially inwardly
of the annular wall.

17. An assembly according to claim 9 in combination with a container
having a neck with an external screw thread; the closure cap being formed
with a corresponding screw thread on the inside of the depending skirt
for fitting the assembly to the container.

Description:

[0001] The invention relates to container closure assemblies incorporating
a reservoir for material (typically a liquid, a powder or a granulate
material) which is kept separate from the material (typically liquid) in
the container until mixing of the materials is required.

[0002] Such arrangements are known, for example, in relation to certain
drinks where the drink is best consumed only shortly after the mixing has
taken place.

[0003] In one known arrangement a generally cylindrical reservoir for
liquid is screw threaded into an annular end piece fitted irremovably to
the neck of a container. When the reservoir is removed from the end
piece, a closure member is dislodged from the reservoir and drops into
the container allowing liquid in the reservoir to be dispensed through
the end piece into the container. When the reservoir has been completely
removed from the end piece the mixed liquids can be poured through the
end piece.

[0004] US 2004/0200741 discloses a cap device for bottles, in which a
valve means is stably placed at a desired position in a neck of a bottle,
which allows an additive to be stored completely separated in the cap
device. The cap device has a funnel part integrally formed in the cap
body to discharge the additive from the cap body into the bottle through
a lower end thereof.

[0005] DE 29820062 concerns a closure cap with an additional container,
the container having a bottom wall which is connected to the sidewall by
a predetermined breaking line. The closure cap further comprises a
cylindrically formed pusher, such that the container is opened when the
pusher moves axially towards the container bottom.

[0006] The arrangements described above are not suitable for use with
standard container filling apparatus using, for example, standard (PCO
neck finish) PET bottles and standard profile closure caps which are
screwed onto the bottles and removed therefrom by unscrewing and breaking
a tamper evident ring. In the prior arrangement the bottle form must be
different since the end piece must not be removable and the profile of
the end piece with reservoir fitted is entirely different from that of a
standard closure cap.

[0007] EP 1 477 421 concerns a closure cap comprising a cylindrical wall
projecting axially from the top wall and forming a receiving chamber. The
receiving chamber has an opening at its lower end. A seal plug is
removably attachable to the cylindrical wall to close the chamber. A
sleeve with a protruding portion is arranged to be fixed to the opening
portion of the vessel. The seal plug is only allowed to pass the
protruding portion in direction of insertion but not in direction of
removal. Thus the plug remains underneath the protruding portion when the
closures cap is removed from the vessel and the receiving chamber is
opened. The plug is not fixed with respect to the container after opening
and hence is free to move. The plug may thus block the opening when the
content shall be removed from the container.

[0008] EP 1 919 791 shows a closure cap adapted to be fitted to the neck
of a container to close the container comprising an upper wall and a
cylindrical skirt depending therefrom and having a reservoir formed on
the underside of the upper wall within the skirt. The reservoir is
provided with a dispensing opening. A sealing member is adapted to be
fitted into the closure cap to close the dispensing opening in the
reservoir. The sealing member is also adapted to fit into the neck of the
container, when the assembly is fitted thereto, with an interference fit
such that when the closure cap is removed from the container, the sealing
member remains held within the neck of the container and is separated
from the closure cap so that the dispensing opening is opened and
material contained therein is dispensed into the container. The sealing
member extends to the upper edge of the container neck. A second
cylindrical wall extends downwardly from the underside of the closure cap
radially outwardly of the reservoir and fits sealingly into the upper end
of the sealing member.

[0009] When the closure is opened there is a friction force between the
second cylindrical wall and the sealing member. Due to this friction
force the closure may be difficult to open. Further more the sealing
member may be loosened by being turned together with the closure. Also,
since the sealing member extends to the upper edge, a consumer might
remove the sealing member after having detached the closure cap making it
impossible to sealingly reclose the container after first opening.

[0010] It is the aim of the present invention to provide a solution which
avoids the disadvantages of the prior art, in which no modification to
the industry standard bottle is required and in which the profile of the
closure is such that it can be handled on unmodified filling lines, which
closure can be easily removed by the consumer and which allows reliable
resealing after first opening.

[0011] Accordingly, the invention provides a closure assembly with closure
cap adapted to be fitted to the neck of a container to close the
container and comprising an upper wall and a cylindrical skirt depending
therefrom. A reservoir is formed on the underside of the upper wall
within the skirt and is provided with a dispensing opening and a closing
member to close the dispensing opening of the reservoir. The closing
member comprises a fixing member, a plug member and a passage element.
The fixing member is adapted to fit into the neck of the container, when
the assembly is fitted thereto, with an interference fit such that when
the closure cap is removed from the container, the closing member remains
held within the neck of the container. The plug member is adapted to
sealingly fit into an open end of the reservoir to close the reservoir
when the closure cap and the closing member are fitted together. The
passage element allows material to be dispensed from the reservoir into
the container when the closure cap is removed from the container neck and
the closing member is separated from the closure cap. The closing member
remains in the container neck as a whole. The seal between plug member
and reservoir is broken and material is dispensed from the reservoir into
the container through the passage element.

[0012] The closure cap is provided with separate sealing means such as
sealing lips or a sealing liner for directly sealing against the
container neck. Preferably, an annular wall extends downwardly from the
underside of the upper wall of the closure cap to fit sealingly into the
neck of the container.

[0013] The arrangement allows for the reservoir to be filled and the
sealing member to be fitted to the closure cap to form an assembly which
can be freely transported and handled by standard machinery set up to
handle a plain container closure consisting simply of an end wall and a
depending skirt. The annular wall can directly seal against the inner
surface of a container neck. Thus, an approved standard sealing lip can
be used.

[0014] When the closure cap is separated from the container neck the
closing member remains within the container neck. Thus there are two
seals to be released: A first sealing between the reservoir and the
closing member is formed by the plug element of the closing member which
seals the reservoir. A second sealing between the closure cap and the
container neck is formed by a standard sealing means forming a seal
between the closure cap and the container neck, such as an annular wall.

[0015] These two sealing effects are completely independent.

[0016] The fixation of the closing member in the container will stay
intact when the closure cap is removed from the bottle and the content of
the reservoir will be dispensed into the container.

[0017] Preferably the fixing member is arranged axially below the annular
wall, when the assembly is fitted to the container.

[0018] Hence, once the connection between plug element and reservoir is
removed, there is no more friction between the closing member and the
closure cap. Thus there is no risk of turning or rotating the closing
member together with the closure cap and there is no friction force
between the closure cap and the closing element impeding the opening of
the container or loosening the closing member.

[0019] The fixing member and the annular wall are both adapted to fit into
the neck of the container, thus the upper section of the container neck
is occupied by the annular wall, whereas the sealing member is arranged
in the lower section and has an axial distance from the upper end of the
container neck.

[0020] When the closure cap has been removed and the mixed content of the
container may be poured out, the user will be unable to remove the
closing member being arranged inside of the container.

[0021] Beneficially the annular wall comprises a closure sealing zone, in
which the outer diameter of the annular wall is greater than the inner
diameter of the container neck. This region provides a reliable sealing
between closure cap and container as long as the closure cap is fitted to
the container. Such seals typically are known as olive seals.

[0022] In a preferred embodiment the fixing member comprises at least one
fixation zone, in which the outer diameter of the sealing member is
greater than the inner diameter of the container neck, more preferably
there are two or three fixation zones in an axial distance form another.
The fixation zones support a reliable contact between the fixing member
and the container neck and support for the closing member remaining in
the container neck when the closure cap is removed.

[0023] Preferably the reservoir is formed by an annular reservoir wall,
more preferably a cylindrical wall, extending downwardly from the
underside of the upper wall of the closure cap.

[0024] With a reservoir being formed cylindrically the closure cap may be
easily completely deformed from a mould while at the same time offering
enough volume inside the reservoir.

[0025] The reservoir may also be formed by a downwardly extending wall
which is slightly conical.

[0026] The reservoir wall provides at his end an undercut which snaps with
the closing member, preventing therefore that said closing member falls
out accidentally during handling or transportation.

[0027] The passage element may be furnished with windows. As long as the
closure cap is applied to the container neck and as long as it is in the
closing position the reservoir is closed by the plug member and the
content of the reservoir may not pour through the windows.

[0028] Preferably the passage element comprises a plurality of radial
bridges and passages are formed between the radial bridges such that when
the closure cap is separated from the container neck and the closing
member, material can be dispensed from the reservoir through the passages
and into the container.

[0029] The bridges form a connection between the plug element and the
fixing element.

[0030] Advantageously the axial length of the reservoir corresponds
approximately to the sum of the axial length of the fixing member and the
axial length of the annular wall. The axial length of the fixing member
is longer than the axial length of the annular wall, since the closure
cap has to be removed from the container neck for opening and the closing
member is meant to remain inside the container neck and thus needs a
sufficient contact area.

[0031] Additionally the closure cap may comprise at least one centring
member extending downwardly from the underside of the upper wall radially
outwardly of the reservoir and radially inwardly of the annular wall,
preferably arranged on the outer surface of the wall defining the
reservoir.

[0032] The centring members help to adjust the fixing members with respect
to the container neck when the closure cap is applied to the container.

[0033] The problem being object of the invention is also solved by an
assembly as described above in combination with a container having a neck
with an external screw thread; the closure cap being formed with a
corresponding screw thread on the inside of the depending skirt for
fitting the assembly to the container.

[0034] Embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to
the accompanying drawings in which:

[0035] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the top of a container fitted with
a closure assembly according to the invention;

[0036] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the top of the container with the
closure cap removed;

[0037] FIG. 3 is a vertical section through the closure cap assembly;

[0038] FIG. 4 is a vertical section through the top of a container with
the closure cap removed but with the fixing member located in the neck of
the container;

[0039] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a further example of a container, a
closing member and a closure cap;

[0040] FIG. 6 is vertical section though the further example of the
closure cap applied to the container.

[0041] The closure assembly shown in the drawings is for use with a
container 1 having an external screw thread on its neck. The container is
a bottle and typically will be made of a plastic material, for example
PET, metal or glass. The closure assembly comprises a cap 2 and a closing
member 3, as can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3. The cap 2 has an upper wall 4
with a cylindrical skirt 5 depending therefrom. The skirt has an internal
screw thread on the inside of the skirt for fitting to the container. As
shown in FIG. 1, the cap is formed with a tamper indicating ring 6 which
is broken away from the skirt when the closure is first opened. As also
seen from FIG. 1, the outer shape of the cap is entirely conventional.

[0042] As can be seen in FIG. 3 a reservoir 7 is formed within the skirt 5
on the underside of the upper wall 4 of the cap. The reservoir is formed
by a mainly cylindrical reservoir wall 8 extending downwardly from the
underside of the upper wall 4. A dispensing opening 9 is defined by the
free end of the wall 8.

[0043] The closing member 3 is sized to be fitted into the closure to
close the dispensing opening 9. The closing member 3 comprises a fixing
member 10, a plug member 11 is supported coaxially within the fixing
member 10 at its lower end by a passage member 13, preferably comprising
a plurality of bridges 14, preferably four or six. The greater the
diameters of the reservoir 7, the plug member 11 and the fixing member 10
are, the more bridges 14 may be arranged around the plug member 11.

[0044] The plug member 11 fits into the open end of the reservoir wall 8
to form a bore seal therewith to close the reservoir 7. The plug 11 may
be a snap fit in the wall 8 to help retain the assembly of cap 2 and
sealing member 3 in fitted relationship during transport, storage and
handling of the assembly.

[0045] An annular wall 12 extends downwardly from the underside of the
closure cap radially outwardly of the reservoir and fits sealingly into
the upper end of the container neck. The annular wall has a convex shape
(seen in the axial direction) on its outer surface forming a sealing area
25 having a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the container
neck. Such a seal is typically known as olive seal. Furthermore, the
closure cap 2 may have further conventional sealing members such as an
outer sealing lip 26 or a top sealing lip 27.

[0046] Additionally or alternatively the closure cap may comprise any
conventional sealing member, such as a conically formed wall extending
from inside of the closure cap.

[0047] When the assembly is fitted to the container 1 (not shown in FIG.
3), the fixing member 10 of the closing member fits into the neck of the
container with an interference fit such that when the closure cap 2 is
unscrewed from the container 1, the fixing member 10 remains held within
the neck of the container 1 and the closing member 3 is separated from
the closure cap 2. As the cap 2 and closing member 3 are separated, the
plug member 11 comes out of the wall 8 of the reservoir so that the
dispensing opening 9 is opened. A liquid, powder or granulate material
held in the reservoir can then pass out of the reservoir to be dispensed
into the container through passages 15 in the closing member formed
between the bridges 14. The mixed contents of the container can then be
poured out through the passages 15.

[0048] The axial length of the reservoir 7 mainly corresponds to the sum
of the axial length 21 of the fixing member 10 and the axial length 20 of
the annular wall 12. Thus the axial length 21 of the fixing member 10 may
be chosen to be sufficient for providing a well adjusted position and for
avoiding a tilting of the closing member 3.

[0049] Further more the length for the fixating member 10 can be chosen
independently from the length 20 of the annular wall 12.

[0050] As best shown in FIG. 3, the fixing member 10 is provided with
three contact zones or fixation zones 16 having an outer diameter 17
being greater than the inner diameter of the container neck and forming a
friction fit between the container neck and closing member 3.

[0051] The cap 2 further comprises centring elements 18 arranged on the
outer surface of the wall 8.

[0052] As can be see in FIG. 4 the upper end of the fixing member 10 rests
below the upper rim 19 of the container neck 1. Thus a person drinking
directly form the container would not necessarily come into contact with
the closing member 3 and cannot easily remove the closing member.

[0053] In an assembly for use on a standard 28 mm diameter bottle neck,
the reservoir may have a diameter of about 12 mm and will be filled to a
depth of about 9 mm giving a liquid volume of about 1 ml. In an assembly
for use on a 38 mm diameter bottle neck, the reservoir may have a
diameter of about 22 mm and be filled to a depth of about 13 mm giving a
liquid volume of about 5 ml. Such reservoirs will not extend below the
skirt 5 or may extend only very slightly. If required, the reservoir
could be made much deeper for certain applications but this will hinder
high speed handling.

[0054] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a further example of a container 1,
a closing member 3 and a closure cap 2.

[0055] The closure cap 2 again has a conventional outer appearance.

[0056] The closing member 3 comprises a fixing member 10 with two fixation
zones 16. The passage element 13 comprises six bridges 14 with passages
15 in between.

[0057] FIG. 6 is a vertical section through the same closure assembly
applied to the container 1. As can be seen in this figure the plug member
11 is formed conical to allow a material stored in the reservoir 7 to
pour out easily through passages 15 between bridges 14.

Patent applications by Klaus Natersky, Grenderich DE

Patent applications by Lino Dreyer, Rixheim FR

Patent applications by Obrist Closures Switzerland GmbH

Patent applications in class Means to manipulate without rupture

Patent applications in all subclasses Means to manipulate without rupture